


Is That Not Ironic?

by Sarixa



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: 90's Music, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-07-14 09:14:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7165013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarixa/pseuds/Sarixa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arguing over the use of the word "Irony" in a 90's pop song with his VERY attractive neighbor was the last thing Demyx expected to happen when he moved into his new apartment. (Written for Zemyx Day!)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Is That Not Ironic?

“And isn't it ironic... don't you think?”

_Tap. Tap. Tap._ Fingers drummed along to the beat against one of many unopened boxes.

“It's like raaaaaaaaiiiiiiiinnn on your wedding day. It's a free riiiiiiiiiide when you've already paid. It's the good adviiiiiiiiiice that you _just_ didn't take. And who would've thought... it figuuuuuuurres.”

Outside, the sun was finally setting after a too long, too hot day, bringing with it the quiet promise of night. Demyx had never been particularly speedy in getting things done, if the pile of boxes and scattered objects around him were any indication. The moment he’d stepped into his brand new apartment early that afternoon, he’d spent the first few hours digging out his laptop, hooking it up, and setting up a playlist to listen to while he unpacked. The rest of the time had been spent slowly pulling things out of boxes and finding places for them while he sang or danced along to his music.

“Well life has a funny waaay of sneaking up on you when you think everything's okay and everything's going riiiiiiiiiiiii-”

_KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK._

“Wha?” A visitor? Already? He’d _just_ moved in, hadn’t even given any of his friends his new address yet. He couldn’t possibly have a visitor. “Coming!”

Demyx stood and wiped off some of the dust off his pants from sitting on the floor for the past hour. There was another knock, almost impatient, and Demyx rushed to open the door, eager smile plastered all over his face. What he met, however, was the sight of one grumpy-looking, but attractive stranger. A _very_ attractive stranger. _Too_ attractive. Surely it had to be a crime to be _that_ attractive. The pair of, well, one beautifully blue eye was narrowed at him, and the fall of slate-blue hair surprisingly did nothing to soften the look in the slightest.

“Um…” It wasn’t the most articulate response, but in the face of a cute, albeit angry-looking stranger, words eluded him.

“Good evening.” Well, at least Mr. Grumpy-but-Cute was polite. He threw a glance past Demyx, taking in the sight of the apartment, before continuing. “I see you’ve yet to settle in, but I ask that you please do something about your music.”

Demyx blinked. “Oh!” Strange. He had been sure his music hadn’t been too loud to disturb the neighbors. He’d had it on the same volume for hours now and no one had yet complained. Then again, maybe this guy had finally had enough and came to verbally skewer him. Inwardly, Demyx was horrified. He didn’t want to be _that_ guy, the one with the loud music everyone always would hate for all time.

“Hey, I guess you’re one of my neighbors, huh? I’m sorry, I thought I was being quiet!”

The cute stranger shook his head, hair fluttering for a moment and Demyx’s heart most definitely did not skip a beat at that. No. Of course not. Maybe it was a secret blessing that he couldn’t see both of those pretty blue eyes.

“Not that.” So it hadn’t been the volume? “Alanis Morissette. Really? You’ve listened to ‘Ironic’ at least 10 times by now. You _do_ realize it’s 2016, right?”

Wait. _What_? Pure blasphemy. “Excuse you, ‘Ironic’ is a _classic!_ ”

Demyx was almost certain he heard a ‘tch’ from the stranger. There was something about Mr. Insulting-but-Hot that made him seem very at home, like he owned the immediate space around him, despite standing in front of Demyx’s door. It could have been the way his arms were crossed. It could’ve been something in his gaze. Either way, he was simultaneously intimidating and sexy and the conflicting emotions were making Demyx feel even warmer. Or had the temperature risen in the past minute?

“If you’re Canadian and tasteless, perhaps.”

That brought Demyx out of his conflicting thoughts, long enough to respond, hands on his hips in a defensive stance. “You take that _back_.”

This guy had to have been at least half a foot shorter than him, and yet Demyx felt almost smaller as the man spoke, something of a challenging smirk on his lips. “I will not. The song is a total malapropism. There is absolutely _nothing_ ironic in the lyrics, save the one line about the man too afraid to fly, who then proceeds to die from a plane crash after boarding his very first flight. Irony is a figure of speech in which the intended meaning is the opposite of that expressed by the words used. The fact that the song is titled ‘Irony’ is the one true irony here.”

Jeez, was this guy a walking dictionary? Surely that had to have been a word for word definition of ‘irony.’ But Demyx didn’t even have a chance to respond, as Mr. Critical-but-Yummy continued.

“You can’t even justify them as situational ironies as they are all mere sad coincidences, again, minus the line about the man afraid to fly.”

Now, Demyx really wasn’t sure what to make of the fact that a too-cute neighbor was actually seriously arguing over the use of the word ‘irony’ in a classic 90’s pop song, but two could play that game, and when it came to music, Demyx was all too happy to join this little squabble. Mr. Uptight-but-Sexy was going down if Demyx had anything to say about it. Crossing his own arms to match his sudden opponent’s stance, he barreled into his own rebuttal, eyes alight with the burning knowledge and passion he held for analyzing song lyrics.

“See, now that’s because you’re looking at it too literally! You’re supposed to look at the song as a whole, not take it apart line by line. The point is that _life_ is ironic and unpredictable. You only know what you know but life knows more than you do.”

It was at this point that Demyx began gesturing with his hands to make his point. He never had been one for standing still, and trying to come across as intimidating really wasn’t his thing, if this situation was anything to go by. Yet, Mr. Cranky-but-Dreamy was watching him with apparent rapt attention. So, what did it matter anyway?

“So, you _think_ you need something and then life goes ‘NOPE, you actually need _this_ instead!’ Your life could be going super great and amazing and you think that’s what’s right for you and then BAM, you find out it was all wrong. Or you think your life is going to absolute hell but it turns out all those bad things are actually good!”

“Hmm…” Mr. Grouchy-but-Spicy tilted his head then, bangs falling gently away from his face, and Demyx inhaled a little more sharply than usual as he caught a fuller glimpse of that calculating blue gaze.

“So, you propose that the song as a whole is an example or a sort of… musical comment on _dramatic_ irony. In this case, we are the characters and life is the audience that is more aware than we are about what is truly going on or what's going to happen.”

Demyx blinked. That sounded right, if worded a bit more technically. “Um, yeah. Exactly.”

“Hm, yes, I suppose there’s something to that. As it’s solid enough, I will concede to your argument.” Mr. Sassy-but-Kissable nodded, a finality to the discussion. “However, I still question your taste in music.”

It was precisely then that ‘Crazy’ by Britney Spears began playing from the speakers of Demyx’s laptop. How fitting, considering this attractive stranger was currently driving Demyx crazy.

“Hey!” Insulted, Demyx frowned, lips forming a slight pout. Perhaps Alanis Morissette was an acquired taste, but Britney? The Princess of Pop? Oh hell no. Demyx was very much about to give Mr. Huffy-but-Alluring a piece of his mind when the man started turning away, presumably to return to his own apartment.

“Well, so long as I’m not subjected to ‘Ironic’ for the eleventh time tonight, I will take my leave. Good night.”

“Wait!”

Impulse was a strong thing. It was especially strong when the heart was drawn to something potentially appealing. And while he didn’t exactly have a plan of action, Demyx definitely did not want to just let his neighbor go without… something. Anything. A proper introduction at least.

Initial grumpiness aside, Mr. Serious-but-Fetching had taken him seriously, no matter how frivolous their discussion, and no one ever took Demyx seriously. He’d given Demyx his full attention for a moment and now the blond wanted more. He had been all too content just sitting in his new apartment alone, unpacking, until this sudden intrusion of a strange neighbor telling him to change his music and now, well, to quote Alanis Morissette, wasn’t that ironic? No sense in letting this slip by, a passing moment lost to the wind.

“Yes?” Sapphire eyes peered at him through slate bangs and Demyx swallowed through the lump in his throat.

“I’ve been unpacking (the word ‘unpacking’ being used very loosely here) all day and I could use a bite to eat.” Sudden nerves began to eat away at him, that expectant gaze boring holes into his skin. “I’m totally new to town so I don’t know any good places around… Would you wanna maybe… show me around and grab some food? My treat!”

The silence that followed would have been nearly suffocating, the burning anticipation not helping, had it not been for the music still playing from the laptop, the lyrics of ‘Crazy’ an approximate reflection of Demyx’s current state.

Finally, he got his answer. “I suppose, since I’ve already interrupted my reading in coming over here. I may as well impart some of my knowledge of the local area. Shall we then?”

It took Demyx just a moment or two to realize that had been the long version of a basic “yes” - he’d been distracted by those damn blue eyes - but he quickly caught up and sprung into movement. “Yeah! Lemme grab my keys!”

Once both apartment doors - it turned out his neighbor lived in the apartment across from his - had been securely locked, the pair walked down the hall and made their way out of the building. Only once they stepped out into the fresh air did Demyx realize something. “Um, my name’s Demyx by the way. What’s yours?” Besides, Demyx was running out of things to call him.

Mr. Horrified-but-Adorable froze in his steps, as if he also just now realized they had yet to swap names, which was, normally, the first thing one did when meeting someone new, and was now very much appalled at his sudden uncharacteristic lack of manners. How could he possibly have been so rude, accidental or not? Something fluttered in Demyx’s stomach when he proceeded to catch the hint of a flustered blush on his neighbor’s cheeks. Now what had caused _that_?

“Forgive me, I’m not usually so… This isn’t like me. It’s Zexion. My name is Zexion.”

Zexion. Demyx tried it on his lips and found he liked the way it sounded. Looking up, he was almost sure he caught a glimpse of a smile on Zexion’s face before it slipped back into a neutral expression.

“This way.” Zexion was already walking ahead and Demyx quickly caught up before slowing into a casual stride.

“Um, thanks for showing me around. And nice to meet you, by the way!”

Zexion nodded in response. “My pleasure.”

…

The following day, it was mid-afternoon and Demyx had shuffled around more boxes than actually taken anything out of them. 'Ironic’ started playing on his laptop speakers and a wide smile broke out on his face as he remembered the pleasant dinner he'd had the night before with his new neighbor. He almost couldn't wait to see Zexion again. The temptation to go over and knock on his door was too great, but as Demyx stood in the middle of his living room, a quick survey of full boxes told him he'd be stuck unpacking for a while.

The chorus of 'Ironic’ was quickly approaching when an idea sparked in Demyx's head. Why not kill two birds with one stone? All but bounding toward his laptop, Demyx raised the volume almost to the max before singing along.

“It's like raaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiinnn on your wedding day! It's a free riiiiiiiiiiiiiide when you've already paid! It's the good adviiiiiiiiiiiiice that you _JUST_ didn't take! And who would've thought! It-”

And then there it was, the telltale knocking on his door, nowhere near as furious, but just as impatient as it had been the previous day.

Demyx grinned and answered the door, said grin widening as he took in the sight of Zexion in navy blue sweats and a lavender t-shirt with an ASCII cat printed on it - and were those _bunny_ slippers?! -, so different from the gray slacks and powder blue button-up shirt he was wearing the night before. Demyx was in jeans and a Halsey t-shirt himself.

“Yes?” he asked as innocently as he could muster, which wasn't much, considering the shit-eating grin on his face.

“You’re playing 'Ironic’ again.”

“Hm? Oh! Yeah, sorry bout that! I’ll take it off the playlist.” He most absolutely was _not_ going to do that.

Zexion saw right through him of course, eyes narrowed almost - was that? - playfully. “ _Right_.”

“Well hey!” piped Demyx before Zexion could continue. “Since you’re here, maybe you could keep me company? Unpacking is boring as hell. Or! Maybe you can help me and we’ll get it done _twice_ as fast!”

Just as he'd done the night before, Zexion looked past Demyx to examine the state of the blond's apartment before the deep blue gaze flicked back to meet waiting blue-green, the critical intensity in it making something flip in Demyx's stomach. Just how Zexion could still look so damn attractive while standing there in a nerdy cat shirt and bunny slippers, Demyx might never know.

“I do hope you don't plan on making me do most of the unpacking while you sing and, presumably, dance to 90s pop music. Because if that is your scheme, then I have no qualms about putting your dishes in your bedroom closet, your clothes in the kitchen cabinets, and what I see is an impressively large CD collection in your shower.”

“Um… No…?”

“Very well, I will assist you.” That most certainly could not have been a smile on the shorter man’s lips as he stepped into the apartment. Demyx was surely seeing things. Right? “I do have one request.”

Demyx was still trying to process that, yes, Zexion had agreed to help and was now in his apartment. “Oh! Sure, what is it?”

And then Zexion really _did_ smile, nothing big, a small quirk of those damned lips Demyx had an urge to kiss, but it was a genuine smile nonetheless. Demyx stood there blinking as Zexion walked over to his laptop, skipped the rest of 'Ironic,’ looked around for a pen and a scrap of paper, and proceeded to scribble something down before returning to hold it out to the blond.

“Next time you wish to summon me, please consider calling me or knocking on my door instead of blasting Alanis Morissette to get my attention.”

“...Oh.” _OH_. Zexion’s phone number securely in his hand, Demyx lit up brighter than the sun streaming through the window, a victory party going on somewhere between his stomach and his chest.

Mr. Too Damn Cute did not like Alanis Morissette. And here he was, giving his number to the guy he had only met _because_ of Alanis Morissette.

Well, is that not ironic?

**Author's Note:**

> Based off an Imagine Your OTP Prompt: Person A is moving into their new apartment and playing music, but not too loudly. Person B knocks on the door and says "You need to do something about this music."  
> Person A: Hey neighbor! I'm sorry, I thought I was being quiet.  
> Person B: Not that. Alanis Morissette. Really? You've listened to "Ironic" at least 10 times by now. You do realize it's 2016, right?  
> Person A: EXCUSE YOU, "IRONIC" IS A CLASSIC.  
> Person B: IF YOU'RE CANADIAN AND TASTELESS MAYBE.
> 
> Thanks to Xenjn for the prompt!


End file.
